A Russian man has today pleaded guilty in a US court to charges that he smuggled large quantities of American-made, military-grade microelectronics to Russia.

Maxim Marchenko, 51, who had been based in Hong Kong, was taken into US custody in September, after he and two unnamed Russian co-conspirators were accused of using shell companies to conceal the fraudulent procurement of so-called OLED micro-displays.

US justice officials said that Marchenko admitted in a New York court to one count of money laundering, which carries a maximum jail sentence of 20 years, and one count of smuggling goods from the US, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

He is due to be sentenced on 6 June.

“The justice department is holding accountable those who would enable the Kremlin and its unjust war of aggression against Ukraine,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen, of the department’s national security division.

Federal prosecutors said OLED micro-displays could be used in rifle scopes, night-vision goggles, thermal optics and other weapons systems.

Marchenko and his co-conspirators falsely claimed that the dual-use technology – meaning it had civilian and military applications – was being sent to China, Hong Kong and elsewhere for use in electron microscopes for medical research.